Christopher Simmons
24K Gold Leaf on Uncut US Currency
31.5” x 27”
Edition of 20

Genuine 24K gold leaf, hand applied to sheets of uncut US currency. Currency is in 50-subject, one-dollar denomination sheets, printed by the Boston mint and issued by the Bureau of Printing & Engraving.

"Money is a waste of Time" takes obvious and playful aim at the common expression, "Time is Money." It juxtaposes the iconic greenback—represented here in both its lowest denomination and as an artifact of mass mechanical production—with a hand-gilded message, a product of manual labor. The application of the gold leaf invalidates the paper as currency while simultaneously increasing its value as a conceptual idea and, potentially, as art. It is, paradoxically, the expenditure of time and the application of declarative thought that elevates this object above its face value.

Note: Sheets may vary in detail from the version shown here but are always genuine currency from the US Bureau of Printing & Engraving. The gold leaf is hand applied and varies slightly in application, luster, and color from piece to piece. Currency sheets often arrive to me with slightly crimped edges. Ships tubed via UPS.

Signed and numbered in pencil in the lower right-hand corner.